Eighteen Brazilian nationals living in Massachusetts are facing federal charges and authorities have seized more than 100 illegal firearms in a federal crackdown on gun trafficking, the U.S. Attorney said Wednesday.
From Cape Cod to Boston to communities north, south and west of Boston, the charges announced Wednesday come after a year-long federal investigation into illegal firearm sales across Massachusetts, U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in a statement.
The illegal firearm trafficking is allegedly tied to a transnational crime syndicate that flourished in communities across the Bay State, Foley said.
“As alleged, these defendants – most of whom have no legal status in the United States – played a role in bringing deadly weapons into Massachusetts, some as traffickers and others as unlawful possessors,” Foley said Wednesday.
“This kind of lawlessness fuels violent crime and empowers transnational criminal organizations that profit from chaos and fear. It puts American lives at risk,” Foley said. “This case is a testament to the strength of our federal, state, and local law enforcement partnerships in keeping our communities safe and upholding the rule of law.”
According to the charging documents, the investigation identified Brazilian nationals in several communities in Massachusetts who have allegedly been involved in the sale of various types of firearms.
Prosecutors allege some of the firearms were tied to gang-related activities involving a large transnational criminal organization, Primeiro Comando da Capital, as well as smaller, local street gangs, specifically the “Tropa de Sete” and “Trem Bala” street gangs.
Primeiro Comando da Capital, originally founded in the prison systems in São Paulo, Brazil, is one of the largest criminal organizations in Brazil and Latin America, Foley said.
Prosecutors allege that Primeiro Comando da Capital members and their associates “are known to commit violent offenses in furtherance of the organization, to include murders, armed robberies, kidnappings and the coordination of a transnational drug trafficking operation.”
To date, investigators have seized approximately 110 firearms and trafficking quantities of fentanyl and ammunition since the investigation began in 2024
The firearms allegedly recovered include, but are not limited to, handguns, rifles, short-barreled rifles and shotguns that were primarily trafficked from areas in Florida and South Carolina into Massachusetts.
Foley said most of the men charged are in the United States illegally. The following men are all charged with engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license: